A man I know from work gave me his copy of Cowboys and Aliens the graphic novel for going out of my way to help him out. Though it was very generous, I almost wish he hadn't. (I'm joking, it was a very kind thing of him to do) I honestly am having a hard time finding something good to say about this book. The art is inconsistant, the story jumps around, I feel it was rushed, it feels like it's missing panels, I just couldn't bring myself to enjoy this book. I guess I could say it has an original concept, but it seems like Fred Van Lente and Andrew Foley just threw two ideas together and decided to attempt at an allegory of America raping Native American land.
No characterization. No logic. 3/10
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Game of the Year Forever...Until the Sequel...Edition
A bunch of things on the agenda for posts, though precedence goes to Harley Quinn's Revenge DLC for Batman: Arkham City. I am personally super excited for this download. I believe it's only $8 for a new two hour addition to the campaign of Arkham City in which both the Batman and Robin are playable characters.
On a somewhat less important note, my fiance has been letting me pick up some back issues of my favorite comics in place of getting new ones. I shall still be getting Batman's new issues monthly (plus annuals) and the occasional graphic novel. I was at the flea market last weekend and got to pick up some pretty cool back issues.
My review for this post will be for the first full appearance of Taskmaster in Avengers #196. Basically, it's just a fun early 80's Avengers comic. I liked the introduction of Taskmaster, short and to the point. It didn't over explain his photographic reflexes with fake science like Marvel decided to do in more recent years, which I personally liked. Certainly not a ground breaking comic, but it introduces one of my favorite villains in a fun story. 8/10
On a somewhat less important note, my fiance has been letting me pick up some back issues of my favorite comics in place of getting new ones. I shall still be getting Batman's new issues monthly (plus annuals) and the occasional graphic novel. I was at the flea market last weekend and got to pick up some pretty cool back issues.
My review for this post will be for the first full appearance of Taskmaster in Avengers #196. Basically, it's just a fun early 80's Avengers comic. I liked the introduction of Taskmaster, short and to the point. It didn't over explain his photographic reflexes with fake science like Marvel decided to do in more recent years, which I personally liked. Certainly not a ground breaking comic, but it introduces one of my favorite villains in a fun story. 8/10
Friday, May 18, 2012
Avengers #26. Go. Away.
I'll write a full post about the comics I picked up today soon, but I had to get my thoughts about Avengers #26 out before I started to vomit. Brian Michael Bendis is a great writer that has helped reform the Marvel universe into what it is today, that being said, I had an EXTREMELY hard time finishing this book. It wasn't even Bendis' fault. Walter Simson. I've never seen a photo of him, but I feel it's safe to assume he's an epileptic 4 year old that hates symmetry. How this guy got the penciling job for on of Marvel's biggest titles is far beyond me. I think he took one look at a "How to Draw Anime" book and went to town. I want to engage this book in combat. I hope this is guest art or something. I'm going to avoid any book penciled by Walter Simson like the plague. 1.5/10
Friday, May 11, 2012
Holy Bat-Blog, Batman!
Sorry for the Marvel heavy blogs recently, I've just been so excited with Avengers Vs. X-Men and Avengers coming out. So, to break the cycle, here's a Buh-nah-nah-nah-nah-nah-nah-nah BATPOST!
Almost every Bat-family title is tying into the Night of the Owls crossover (I believe the only exception being Batwoman). I'm going to attempt to refrain from any major spoilers, but if you are unaware of the event completely, I suggest you stop reading this and catch on your Batman vol. 2 by Scott Snyder.
In Batman and Detective Comics, Batman faces some of the numerous Talons (The Court of Owls assassins, spies, and now soldiers) alone in Arkham Asylum, Wayne Manor, and the Batcave. The Talons are no joke. Partially due to sheer numbers, but also in skill. If you don't know why the Talons are as good as they are, well, pick up the past few issues of Batman and the last 2 of Nightwing.
Batwing (in Gotham on unrelated business) gets tangled into all the madness. Though I've been really enjoying Batwing as a completely new side of the war on crime, this issue seemed a bit rushed. I suppose that's to be expected though, it's not like anyone knew the Talons would descend on Gotham like they have. We also see a side of Batwing I like, he saves the life of the corrupt official that the Talon as sent to assassinate, but knocks the official out when he thanks Batwing for saving his life. He made it quite apparent he didn't want the scums thanks.
All-in-all, I've really enjoyed the event. thus far. I'm tired of comic events getting so much hype for them to have no real lasting effects of their respective universes. I find myself seeing these events and wishing they could be like the Superhuman Civil War or the Decimation which are both still having great effects on the Marvel Universe. For the first time in years I can say that I'm loving this DC crossover.
My only complaints so far about this even are about Batwoman. She is seemingly unaffected by these events. Though she isn't actually tied to Batman in any real way, she lives in Gotham City. How can hundreds of ninja-like assassins killing every person in power in the Gotham area not affect her? In an effort to figure out how Batwoman would remain affected, I played devil's advocate against my own disbelief. It took me a bit, but I did think of a single argument that miiiight explain this: Minor Spoiler Alert: When Alfred put out the call to the Bat family, perhaps he couldn't reach or perhaps even just didn't try to reach Batwoman. I find both of these highly unlikely. For the "couldn't reach her" argument, this is the Batcave Alfred is calling from. They are going to have every signal to every device around. If she didn't have any form of communication on her,(which let's face it, Batwoman is going to have an ear piece or cell phone, something on her even when she's just being Kate) Alfred would get her the message. As for the "didn't try to reach her" argument, come on. One of the most capable crime fighters in the city and Alfred doesn't even bother trying her? The real reason has to be with the Amy Reeder the writer, or someone in DC Comics. Maybe Amy Reeder didn't want to. Maybe she is too into her confusing drug trip of a story arc in Batwoman to have bothered. If you're getting a vibe, it because the current arc on Batwoman sucks.
I'm looking forward to the rest of a DC event that finally has some real impact on characters that I hope will go even deeper.
Almost every Bat-family title is tying into the Night of the Owls crossover (I believe the only exception being Batwoman). I'm going to attempt to refrain from any major spoilers, but if you are unaware of the event completely, I suggest you stop reading this and catch on your Batman vol. 2 by Scott Snyder.
In Batman and Detective Comics, Batman faces some of the numerous Talons (The Court of Owls assassins, spies, and now soldiers) alone in Arkham Asylum, Wayne Manor, and the Batcave. The Talons are no joke. Partially due to sheer numbers, but also in skill. If you don't know why the Talons are as good as they are, well, pick up the past few issues of Batman and the last 2 of Nightwing.
Batwing (in Gotham on unrelated business) gets tangled into all the madness. Though I've been really enjoying Batwing as a completely new side of the war on crime, this issue seemed a bit rushed. I suppose that's to be expected though, it's not like anyone knew the Talons would descend on Gotham like they have. We also see a side of Batwing I like, he saves the life of the corrupt official that the Talon as sent to assassinate, but knocks the official out when he thanks Batwing for saving his life. He made it quite apparent he didn't want the scums thanks.
All-in-all, I've really enjoyed the event. thus far. I'm tired of comic events getting so much hype for them to have no real lasting effects of their respective universes. I find myself seeing these events and wishing they could be like the Superhuman Civil War or the Decimation which are both still having great effects on the Marvel Universe. For the first time in years I can say that I'm loving this DC crossover.
My only complaints so far about this even are about Batwoman. She is seemingly unaffected by these events. Though she isn't actually tied to Batman in any real way, she lives in Gotham City. How can hundreds of ninja-like assassins killing every person in power in the Gotham area not affect her? In an effort to figure out how Batwoman would remain affected, I played devil's advocate against my own disbelief. It took me a bit, but I did think of a single argument that miiiight explain this: Minor Spoiler Alert: When Alfred put out the call to the Bat family, perhaps he couldn't reach or perhaps even just didn't try to reach Batwoman. I find both of these highly unlikely. For the "couldn't reach her" argument, this is the Batcave Alfred is calling from. They are going to have every signal to every device around. If she didn't have any form of communication on her,(which let's face it, Batwoman is going to have an ear piece or cell phone, something on her even when she's just being Kate) Alfred would get her the message. As for the "didn't try to reach her" argument, come on. One of the most capable crime fighters in the city and Alfred doesn't even bother trying her? The real reason has to be with the Amy Reeder the writer, or someone in DC Comics. Maybe Amy Reeder didn't want to. Maybe she is too into her confusing drug trip of a story arc in Batwoman to have bothered. If you're getting a vibe, it because the current arc on Batwoman sucks.
I'm looking forward to the rest of a DC event that finally has some real impact on characters that I hope will go even deeper.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Free Comic Book De Mayo Part 1: Long Live Dr. Dinosaur
First off I'd like to say this about Free Comic Book Day:
So, I'll just hop into this I suppose. Any double sided issues will be done on different numbers.
1. Red 5 Comics Featuring Atomic Robo, Neo Zoic, and Bonnie Lass. The good: Hilarious velociraptor (calling himself Dr. Dinosaur) that explains ridiculous situations with even more ridiculous phony science that other characters openly point out as flawed though he's somehow right. Dr. Dinosaur creates a time loop and that somehow creates a futuresaurus rex. The bad:...Everything else. I had a hard time finishing Neo Zoic and Bonnie Lass. It would have been hard to finish Atomic Robo if Dr. Dinosaur wasn't so awesome.Maybe I didn't like the stories because I was unfamiliar with the characters. That being said, Free Comic Book Day is great for consumers for two reasons: FREE COMICS! And two, it's a great way for new readers to get into it all. I shouldn't have to have previous knowledge to have a good time reading a comic meant for new readers. Or maybe, juuuust maybe, all three stories sucked. I say just give Dr. Dinosaur his own comic.
2.Bongo Comics Free-For-All. I hope the punny title doesn't get wasted on you. Bongo Comics is Matt Groening's comic company that he uses for Simpson, Simpson related, and Futurama comics. The plot of this is good, Homer Simpson and his buddies join Bear Patrol and are forced stop coordinated bear maulings across Springfield that all spawned from the hit reality show, "Celebrities Dancing With Bears". Sounds like a classic Simpson's set up to me. It didn't have as many gags as I would have liked, but all in all, enjoyable.
3. SpongeBob Comics: Freestyle Funnies. Surprisingly, SpongeBob translates very well to the page. It reads like one of the better episodes of the show. It's also about SpongeBob annoying Squidward about comics, so funny, and befitting. The last page is just filler strips with short gags. I'm looking forward to more of this quality from SpongeBob Comics.
4.Dinosaur's Vs. Aliens. Hmmm. Not much to say about this one. I went in expecting nothing put carnage and lasers, came out a bit confused. Not entirely sure of the plot. Aliens use up all their resources on their planet, come to earth and fight dinosaurs. Or maybe the aliens are dinosaurs looking for resources and there are other dinosaurs. And I think there are dinosaur tribal chiefs or something....I really don't know. Grant Morrison penned it, so I should have been expecting to be sort of confused and unsatisfied. Beyond all that, the art is absurdly gorgeous. Even with a dumb plot, the art is the best out of any comic I got that day. But some of the dinosaurs were wearing necklaces and headdresses I think. I don't even know.
5.Mega Man: Origin of a Hero. The same origin story every nerd knows, but with more good art. (Except that cover art. Bleck.) Good, but not great, a good starting point for someone unfamiliar with the Blue Bomber.
6.Peanuts. What do you want me to say? It's Peanuts. It's cute. It's funny.
7.Adventure Time with Finn and Jake. This book was so lumping mathematical to the max. Hilarious, awkward, and just a perfect comic book adaptation of the Adventure Time show.
8.Serenity: Firefly Class 03-K64. I feel I'm the only human left who hasn't seen both Firefly and the movie sequel Serenity. After reading this comic (and knowing Christina Hendricks is in them) I'm kind of disappointed in myself. A short space cowboy story with some fun art. I definitely want to check out more comics, the show, and movie versions.
9.Star Wars. Just a short, classic, cool Han Solo And Chewbacca story. The art looked like it was bassed off of video games cell shaded art that was based on a cell shaded comic. Just look at it and tell me I'm wrong. Han Solo was too cool to write the book on cool, so he turned into Indiana Jones wrote a book on the history of cool and had himself as Han Solo write the preface. If you're not picking up what I'm putting down, this story is cool, and so is Han Solo.
10.Yo Gabba Gabba! The whole time I was reading this all I could think about was "hipster. hipster. hipster". I came in expecting a cute comic for kids, but should have expected it to be aimed at the adult and teenage audience of the Nick Jr. show. I find the show very funny and clever, this however was just a way to sell it to the wretched 90's obsessed high schooler. (and by the way, I loved the 90's too, but shut the hell up already. I get it. You were born in the early 90's. So was I. Congrats) I was really let down by this.
11.Strawberry Shortcake. What am I doing with my life?
12.Casper's Scare School. Where did I go wrong?
Well, that's about it for now. I'll finish the oh-too-long Free Comic Book Day blog later on. Hope you enjoyed or found it somewhat useful or agreeable.
1. Red 5 Comics Featuring Atomic Robo, Neo Zoic, and Bonnie Lass. The good: Hilarious velociraptor (calling himself Dr. Dinosaur) that explains ridiculous situations with even more ridiculous phony science that other characters openly point out as flawed though he's somehow right. Dr. Dinosaur creates a time loop and that somehow creates a futuresaurus rex. The bad:...Everything else. I had a hard time finishing Neo Zoic and Bonnie Lass. It would have been hard to finish Atomic Robo if Dr. Dinosaur wasn't so awesome.Maybe I didn't like the stories because I was unfamiliar with the characters. That being said, Free Comic Book Day is great for consumers for two reasons: FREE COMICS! And two, it's a great way for new readers to get into it all. I shouldn't have to have previous knowledge to have a good time reading a comic meant for new readers. Or maybe, juuuust maybe, all three stories sucked. I say just give Dr. Dinosaur his own comic.
2.Bongo Comics Free-For-All. I hope the punny title doesn't get wasted on you. Bongo Comics is Matt Groening's comic company that he uses for Simpson, Simpson related, and Futurama comics. The plot of this is good, Homer Simpson and his buddies join Bear Patrol and are forced stop coordinated bear maulings across Springfield that all spawned from the hit reality show, "Celebrities Dancing With Bears". Sounds like a classic Simpson's set up to me. It didn't have as many gags as I would have liked, but all in all, enjoyable.
3. SpongeBob Comics: Freestyle Funnies. Surprisingly, SpongeBob translates very well to the page. It reads like one of the better episodes of the show. It's also about SpongeBob annoying Squidward about comics, so funny, and befitting. The last page is just filler strips with short gags. I'm looking forward to more of this quality from SpongeBob Comics.
4.Dinosaur's Vs. Aliens. Hmmm. Not much to say about this one. I went in expecting nothing put carnage and lasers, came out a bit confused. Not entirely sure of the plot. Aliens use up all their resources on their planet, come to earth and fight dinosaurs. Or maybe the aliens are dinosaurs looking for resources and there are other dinosaurs. And I think there are dinosaur tribal chiefs or something....I really don't know. Grant Morrison penned it, so I should have been expecting to be sort of confused and unsatisfied. Beyond all that, the art is absurdly gorgeous. Even with a dumb plot, the art is the best out of any comic I got that day. But some of the dinosaurs were wearing necklaces and headdresses I think. I don't even know.
5.Mega Man: Origin of a Hero. The same origin story every nerd knows, but with more good art. (Except that cover art. Bleck.) Good, but not great, a good starting point for someone unfamiliar with the Blue Bomber.
6.Peanuts. What do you want me to say? It's Peanuts. It's cute. It's funny.
7.Adventure Time with Finn and Jake. This book was so lumping mathematical to the max. Hilarious, awkward, and just a perfect comic book adaptation of the Adventure Time show.
8.Serenity: Firefly Class 03-K64. I feel I'm the only human left who hasn't seen both Firefly and the movie sequel Serenity. After reading this comic (and knowing Christina Hendricks is in them) I'm kind of disappointed in myself. A short space cowboy story with some fun art. I definitely want to check out more comics, the show, and movie versions.
9.Star Wars. Just a short, classic, cool Han Solo And Chewbacca story. The art looked like it was bassed off of video games cell shaded art that was based on a cell shaded comic. Just look at it and tell me I'm wrong. Han Solo was too cool to write the book on cool, so he turned into Indiana Jones wrote a book on the history of cool and had himself as Han Solo write the preface. If you're not picking up what I'm putting down, this story is cool, and so is Han Solo.
10.Yo Gabba Gabba! The whole time I was reading this all I could think about was "hipster. hipster. hipster". I came in expecting a cute comic for kids, but should have expected it to be aimed at the adult and teenage audience of the Nick Jr. show. I find the show very funny and clever, this however was just a way to sell it to the wretched 90's obsessed high schooler. (and by the way, I loved the 90's too, but shut the hell up already. I get it. You were born in the early 90's. So was I. Congrats) I was really let down by this.
11.Strawberry Shortcake. What am I doing with my life?
12.Casper's Scare School. Where did I go wrong?
Well, that's about it for now. I'll finish the oh-too-long Free Comic Book Day blog later on. Hope you enjoyed or found it somewhat useful or agreeable.
The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Opening Weekend
The post title may poke fun at Disney's..I mean...Marvel's The Avengers, but I sat in awe of the film. Now I'm going to just put out a general SPOILER ALERT for anyone who hasn't yet seen this film. I'll try to keep this one short-ish in prep for what I'm assuming is going to be an all day extravaganza of writing a blog or two about Free Comic Book Day. The casting was great. I still believe there is no human better suited to play Iron Man than Robert Downey Jr. I hope anyone reading caught that last pun. You're welcome.
I took Sarah (my soon-to-be-fiance whom for some reason puts up with my intense comic book passion) to see Marvel's The Avengers and decided to pony up the extra infinite dollars to see it in 3-D. I was very happy with that choice. The 3-D was the first non-let down since Avatar (speaking purely on visuals here guys).
The movie mixes the origins of the original Avengers, The Ultimates (an alternate universe version of the Avengers), and some completely new concepts. The Chitauri redesigns are one of the best parts. As opposed to being the slow, bulky, Skrull alternative aliens, the Chitauri are now tall, thin, creepy invaders I now wish they had always been. Once again, I couldn't get enough of Loki. A liar, a schemer, and to proud and boastful to know when he himself is being played. I highly enjoyed the feel of chaos, that this was truly a threat no one hero (short of Batman) could handle themselves. The alien invasion mixed with the threat of a trickster demi-god pretty much seems like a damning situation to me. It seemed like a good reason for the superhumans to come together, not just a problem that they happily hang around and solve together before they go out for some drinks.
Surprisingly funny, no new unneeded romantic sub-plot, good use of characters, unprecedented action scenes, and a bag of chips. The easter egg after the first set of credits was more than I hoped for.I'm not going to ruin it until a later post, but the villain surprise left me drooling. I don't even feel Marvel's Avengers needs to be rated as a superhero movie. But for the sake of it, as a superhero movie 10/10. I've only said that about one other superhero movie, being The Dark Knight. As a general movie, 9.5/10. Loved this movie. Keep 'em coming marvel. And please, more in-movie easter eggs?
I took Sarah (my soon-to-be-fiance whom for some reason puts up with my intense comic book passion) to see Marvel's The Avengers and decided to pony up the extra infinite dollars to see it in 3-D. I was very happy with that choice. The 3-D was the first non-let down since Avatar (speaking purely on visuals here guys).
The movie mixes the origins of the original Avengers, The Ultimates (an alternate universe version of the Avengers), and some completely new concepts. The Chitauri redesigns are one of the best parts. As opposed to being the slow, bulky, Skrull alternative aliens, the Chitauri are now tall, thin, creepy invaders I now wish they had always been. Once again, I couldn't get enough of Loki. A liar, a schemer, and to proud and boastful to know when he himself is being played. I highly enjoyed the feel of chaos, that this was truly a threat no one hero (short of Batman) could handle themselves. The alien invasion mixed with the threat of a trickster demi-god pretty much seems like a damning situation to me. It seemed like a good reason for the superhumans to come together, not just a problem that they happily hang around and solve together before they go out for some drinks.
Surprisingly funny, no new unneeded romantic sub-plot, good use of characters, unprecedented action scenes, and a bag of chips. The easter egg after the first set of credits was more than I hoped for.I'm not going to ruin it until a later post, but the villain surprise left me drooling. I don't even feel Marvel's Avengers needs to be rated as a superhero movie. But for the sake of it, as a superhero movie 10/10. I've only said that about one other superhero movie, being The Dark Knight. As a general movie, 9.5/10. Loved this movie. Keep 'em coming marvel. And please, more in-movie easter eggs?
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Don't Bat-Bother
Just a quick note to anyone that comments about battles between superheroes. Ask about ANY super battle except for anything with Batman. He wins. Punisher, the Bat won. Green Lanterns (Guy and Hal), the Bat won. Aquaman, the Bat won. Captain America, the Bat won. Dracula, the Bat won. Superman, the Bat fucking won. I'm not saying Batman is boring, he's the best fictional character there is, but he can't loose in the long run. So please, don't ask me.
What If...The Avengers Got Trapped in an Invincible Cave, Who Would Eat the Others?
I'm super excited about the Avengers movie. If you don't know about this, you..well..you probably had friends growing up. For anyone unfamiliar with the Avengers, they are a group of heroes that look like this: http://pokememes.memebase.com/2012/05/03/pokmon-pokevengers/. Okay, so maybe there are a few more of them. The questions I have about this is, if the Avengers all got in separate one-on-one battles, who would win?
Who would win, Hulk or Thor? This is a touchy one with so many variables. Thor has been said to hold back when fighting the Hulk, that being said, to the best of my knowledge, Thor has only beat Hulk twice (at least in one-on-one) out of the many times they've gone toe to toe. Thor certainly starts out stronger, yet Hulk gets more powerful with more anger. Thor does have his hammer Mjonir and command of lightning, but Hulk have taken a nuclear explosion. Thor is a god. Hulk declared war on all of Manhattan, and won (for all intents and purposes). Thor has lifted a serpent that surrounded the entire earth. Hulk has taken out the Avengers. Thor lifted an entire realm. Hulk has caught the Iron Fist's punch. The point? They are both immeasurably strong and incredibly resilient. Thor's strength levels have gone up since the Skrull Invasion, and the Hulk seems to do less amazing acts after World War Hulk. I almost hate to say it being a huge Hulk fan, but I believe Thor would come out on top in most circumstances Winner: Thor
Who would win, Black Widow or Nick Furry? Black Widow 9 out of 10 times. She's faster, has similar tech, more agile, similar training, and she has a faster trigger finger. The only thing Fury has on her is being more of a cold blooded killer. That IS a pretty big advantage, but lets not forget Black Widow has put down her share of bad guys too. That was fast. Winner: Black Widow
Who would win, Iron Man or Hawkeye. Iron Man. This one would hardly be a battle. If this were old school Iron Man, Hawkeye could just shoot Tony in the eyes or shoot the mask off, something along those lines. I'm talking talking about modern Iron Man. Hawkeye though resourceful doesn't have any trick arrows on him that could beat Iron Man. And to anyone that would bring up Hawkeye's contained nuke-arrow: He doesn't carry those around, and if he happened to bring one out just in case? Tony could easily send it right back at Barton or disarm it. Winner: Iron Man
Who would win, Spider-Man or Beast? Spider-Man wins on almost every level including strength, agility, and speed. Beast has super senses and a vastly superior mind. That's all he needs. Beast has come up with some of the best inventions in existence. He came up with a box that can hold the freaking Phoenix Force! Even with Spider-Man's spider sense, Beast has a plethora of gadgets that could take Spider-Man down. Winner: Beast
Who would win, Wolverine or Mr. Fantastic? This one is pretty cut and dry. For a super genius, Mr. Fantastic is a fantastic idiot. While he could use a super magnet or something to incapacitate Wolverine, I feel he'd just stretch out and try to hold him in a frontal attack. Wolverine wouldn't hesitate to cut Richards the new asshole he deserves. Winner: Wolverine, he's the best there is.
There are a TON of other options for this, but I'm headed of to bed. Leave a comment about one of these you think my answer is dumb for, agree, or suggest cooler fights and situations for future posts.
Who would win, Hulk or Thor? This is a touchy one with so many variables. Thor has been said to hold back when fighting the Hulk, that being said, to the best of my knowledge, Thor has only beat Hulk twice (at least in one-on-one) out of the many times they've gone toe to toe. Thor certainly starts out stronger, yet Hulk gets more powerful with more anger. Thor does have his hammer Mjonir and command of lightning, but Hulk have taken a nuclear explosion. Thor is a god. Hulk declared war on all of Manhattan, and won (for all intents and purposes). Thor has lifted a serpent that surrounded the entire earth. Hulk has taken out the Avengers. Thor lifted an entire realm. Hulk has caught the Iron Fist's punch. The point? They are both immeasurably strong and incredibly resilient. Thor's strength levels have gone up since the Skrull Invasion, and the Hulk seems to do less amazing acts after World War Hulk. I almost hate to say it being a huge Hulk fan, but I believe Thor would come out on top in most circumstances Winner: Thor
Who would win, Black Widow or Nick Furry? Black Widow 9 out of 10 times. She's faster, has similar tech, more agile, similar training, and she has a faster trigger finger. The only thing Fury has on her is being more of a cold blooded killer. That IS a pretty big advantage, but lets not forget Black Widow has put down her share of bad guys too. That was fast. Winner: Black Widow
Who would win, Iron Man or Hawkeye. Iron Man. This one would hardly be a battle. If this were old school Iron Man, Hawkeye could just shoot Tony in the eyes or shoot the mask off, something along those lines. I'm talking talking about modern Iron Man. Hawkeye though resourceful doesn't have any trick arrows on him that could beat Iron Man. And to anyone that would bring up Hawkeye's contained nuke-arrow: He doesn't carry those around, and if he happened to bring one out just in case? Tony could easily send it right back at Barton or disarm it. Winner: Iron Man
Who would win, Spider-Man or Beast? Spider-Man wins on almost every level including strength, agility, and speed. Beast has super senses and a vastly superior mind. That's all he needs. Beast has come up with some of the best inventions in existence. He came up with a box that can hold the freaking Phoenix Force! Even with Spider-Man's spider sense, Beast has a plethora of gadgets that could take Spider-Man down. Winner: Beast
Who would win, Wolverine or Mr. Fantastic? This one is pretty cut and dry. For a super genius, Mr. Fantastic is a fantastic idiot. While he could use a super magnet or something to incapacitate Wolverine, I feel he'd just stretch out and try to hold him in a frontal attack. Wolverine wouldn't hesitate to cut Richards the new asshole he deserves. Winner: Wolverine, he's the best there is.
There are a TON of other options for this, but I'm headed of to bed. Leave a comment about one of these you think my answer is dumb for, agree, or suggest cooler fights and situations for future posts.
The Mightily Handsome Thor
My original plan for the (or maybe just the first) post today was to just talk about superhero brawls I'd like to see, but instead I'm going to post about last years live action movie Thor as I watch it.
First off, casting is not what I would have expected, but brilliant. I love Anthony Hopkins as Odin. Within the first few moments they already have several key details different. How Mjonir was created was very different than in the comic or original mythology. The movie says the hammer was forged inside of a star, which although cool, changes a lot more than just the hammer's origins when I thought about it. It changes the entire tale of Loki. This means Loki never took Sif's hair being cut off by Loki etc. So basically, they seem to have changed the origin of the hammer because at this point in the Marvel Movie-verse, Loki is only known as a trickster, not a dangerous member of the royal family. The other big change was how Odin lost his eye. In the comic and myth, he gave his eye to drink from the Well of Wisdom. While in the movie he loses his eye in the final battle in the first great war against the frost giants. This might mean that Odin Allfather never drank from the Well of Wisdom and therefore cannot tell the future. That in turn means he would have no knowledge that Loki is a traitor. Then again, he might know and just not give a shit...sort of like the original myth too. Wow. Never really thought about it, but Odin is a crappy king. He could see the future, knew Loki was evil, and never did anything. He might see this as futile due to fate, but Thor has changed the future many times. Odin is a lazy ass. Fact. Oh, and there's always the possibility that the writers just did whatever they wanted.
I think Tom Hiddleston plays an awesome Loki. I also love the writing for Loki. He lies with almost every word that leaves his mouth, but the movie doesn't make it cliche by showing him smirking as the others walk away, dramatic pause, or sinister music. You have to actually pay attention to the plot and his slight detail changes to catch onto Loki's lies. The only real moments you get out of him are spouts of anger. So far, all though not the best Marvel film, it is certainly the smartest.
So, back to the action. There is a mud fight scene between Thor and a huge black guard for the ladies, Kay Dennings and her oddly attractive teeth gap. And hey, SPOILER ALERT: Hawkeye makes an appearance! I honestly wasn't expecting that to happen.
Final verdict? Smart. Funny. Just the right amount of action so that it's energetic and cool, but not so much that it's just an action packed meat head expolsi-thon. Smart. Especially Loki. Loki and Darci are my favorite characters. I know Loki is making a a comeback in the Avengers and the eventual sequel to Thor. I hope Kat Denning's character comes back too. For a comic book movie 8.5/10. For a movie in general, 8/10. Very good.
First off, casting is not what I would have expected, but brilliant. I love Anthony Hopkins as Odin. Within the first few moments they already have several key details different. How Mjonir was created was very different than in the comic or original mythology. The movie says the hammer was forged inside of a star, which although cool, changes a lot more than just the hammer's origins when I thought about it. It changes the entire tale of Loki. This means Loki never took Sif's hair being cut off by Loki etc. So basically, they seem to have changed the origin of the hammer because at this point in the Marvel Movie-verse, Loki is only known as a trickster, not a dangerous member of the royal family. The other big change was how Odin lost his eye. In the comic and myth, he gave his eye to drink from the Well of Wisdom. While in the movie he loses his eye in the final battle in the first great war against the frost giants. This might mean that Odin Allfather never drank from the Well of Wisdom and therefore cannot tell the future. That in turn means he would have no knowledge that Loki is a traitor. Then again, he might know and just not give a shit...sort of like the original myth too. Wow. Never really thought about it, but Odin is a crappy king. He could see the future, knew Loki was evil, and never did anything. He might see this as futile due to fate, but Thor has changed the future many times. Odin is a lazy ass. Fact. Oh, and there's always the possibility that the writers just did whatever they wanted.
I think Tom Hiddleston plays an awesome Loki. I also love the writing for Loki. He lies with almost every word that leaves his mouth, but the movie doesn't make it cliche by showing him smirking as the others walk away, dramatic pause, or sinister music. You have to actually pay attention to the plot and his slight detail changes to catch onto Loki's lies. The only real moments you get out of him are spouts of anger. So far, all though not the best Marvel film, it is certainly the smartest.
So, back to the action. There is a mud fight scene between Thor and a huge black guard for the ladies, Kay Dennings and her oddly attractive teeth gap. And hey, SPOILER ALERT: Hawkeye makes an appearance! I honestly wasn't expecting that to happen.
Final verdict? Smart. Funny. Just the right amount of action so that it's energetic and cool, but not so much that it's just an action packed meat head expolsi-thon. Smart. Especially Loki. Loki and Darci are my favorite characters. I know Loki is making a a comeback in the Avengers and the eventual sequel to Thor. I hope Kat Denning's character comes back too. For a comic book movie 8.5/10. For a movie in general, 8/10. Very good.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Avengers Vs. X-Men Part 1: Captain Government-Stooge
Okay. Comics time. HUGE SPOILER ALERTS!!! Here is an overview of Avengers Vs. X-Men (so far), the huge event going on in Marvel Comics right now. (I'll interject my thoughts here and there) Jean Grey took her own life some years back to rid the world of the intensely powerful and destructive Phoenix Force that chose Jean as a host body. Though Jean has (as of this post) remained dead, the Phoenix Force is on it's way back to earth. Most every superhuman believes the Phoenix is headed towards Hope, the first mutant born since the Decimation. (The Decimation was an event in which all but 198 of earth's mutants were depowered or killed.) While Cyclops and most of the X-Men see Hope as the mutant messiah that can be trained to handle the Phoenix, while Captain America and most of the Avengers see the Phoenix as a force meant only to destroy earth. So...Captain America decides it's a good idea to go Utopia (Island home of Cyclop's X-Men) and demand to take Hope into custody. Cyclops sees this as not only an infringement of Hope's rights, but as an attack on mutant rights as a whole.
I don't think Captain saw this as an attack on mutant rights. But how can "Freedom's Sentry" think it's okay to show up to someones home and just take a child into custody?
So back to the story. Cyclops is not happy. So unhappy in fact, Cyclops blasts Captain with his optic blasts. Captain, apparently expecting things to go south in a hurry, commands a SHIELD Hellicarrier hiding in the clouds down carrying a dozen or so Avengers. (Luke Cage, Red Hulk, The Thing, Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, Giant Man, Black Widow, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, Black Panther, Iron Fist, Hawkeye, Mockingbird, and Daredevil to be exact.) All hell breaks loose (and in Magik and Doctor Strange's cases, literally). Magneto makes Colossus' metal body fly into the hellicarrier. Colossus starts tearing the ship to shreds. A voice comes from behind the Juggernaut powered Colossus asking, "So you're the strongest on this island?". Red Hulk throws a punch at Colossus which if I remember correctly sends then plunging into water along the Avengers thrown off by Colossus' rampage. Several fights break out under the waves: Juggernaut-Colossus vs. Red Hulk, and Namor vs. Luke Cage and the Thing. Colosuss starts wooping on Red Hulk. I mean REALLY wooping on him. Piotr loses control of the Juggernaut within him and starts giving Red Hulk the worst beating of his career. Red Hulk points to an underwater pillar holding up Utopia that Colossus has cracked. Unable to stop himself, Piotr demands Red Hulk beat him unconscious. Red Hulk proceeds to oblige. Luke Cage must swim to shore or something as he has left the fray between Thing and Namor. I'll get this one over quickly because it pissed me off. The Thing wins over Namor the Submariner...in water. Yep. Dumb.
On the shores, battles break off everywhere. One of the most prominent being Magneto vs. Iron Man. Another match that made me sort of angry. Iron Man comes into battle wearing a non-metal suit made of nano-tubes. Okay, fine. Magneto fights people that don't have metal armor all the time. Magneto should have crushed Iron Man. Well, he did with a building, but Iron Man just sort of crawled out with a headache. Point is, Iron Man won. Bringing the score Avengers: 3 to X-Men: 0. WEAKSAUCE.
To skip ahead some, the X-Men surrender. It turns out to be a ruse, and they escape using Magik's teleportation and Emma Frost's mind clouding to stay hidden on their search for Hope. (Forgot to mention Hope ran off feeling like a pawn in all this.) Wolverine goes with Captains team of Avengers to search the Savage Land for Hope. Captain brings into question Wolverine's loyalty. Wolverine still seems content on killing her to once again rid the universe of the Phoenix. Instead of Captain just keeping an eye on Wolverine, Captain SUCKER PUNCHES HIM IN THE FUCKING FACE. A fight breaks out between them with Wolverine seemingly winning when Captain calls in a waiting Giant Man to ATTACK WOLVERINE FROM BEHIND. Still not down, Wolverine looks as if he's about to stand again to fight, CAPTAIN AMERICA ORDERS MOCKINGBIRD TO SUCK WOLVERINE OUT OF HE PLANE INTO A FREEFALL TO ANTARCTICA. The caps are to show my surprise that Captain America would stoop so low. Even knowing Wolverine is pretty much unkillable, that's messed up for Captain America. Check out my next post coming later today where I'll write about superhero brawls I want to see and who I think will win.
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